News and opinions about gaming and pop culture filtered through a HeroClix lens!!

Month: May 2017

[EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the fourth in a quick series of local game announcements for SouthEast Michigan Clix’ers before we go back to our regular programming!! We’re running a Scenario called Heroclix: The Gathering, obviously inspired by the eternally popular CCG Magic: The Gathering. Each month is based–very loosely–off of an existing Magic expansion. We then weave everything together with an ever-evolving narrative that changes based on the results of our local tournaments. Think of this as a “What If” Magic: The Gathering story told through Heroclix! Read about the Month One posting here, the Month Two scenario here, and the Month Three game here!]

Welcome to Month Four of Heroclix: The Gathering!! Before we get into what’s happening this Month, let’s review everything that has happened in our story so far…

HEROCLIX: THE GATHERING: MONTH THREE: TIME SPIRAL!!

The Guildpact has been shattered. Ravnica has been torn apart from the inside by the machinations of its Guild Paruns (notably Szadek of House Dimir) and their ever escalating intrigues. But the shattering of the Guildpact also attracted the attention of the predatory plane of New Phyrexia, who opened portals to Ravnica in pursuit of conquest and resources.

Kraj rolled through the City, absorbing Ravnican and Phyrexian alike, until the initial Phyrexian invaders were forced to retreat. Reasoning that a Second Wave of Phyrexian invaders was all but assured to wipe them out, the surviving Paruns of Ravnica regrouped in the vast smoldering ruin of the Azorius Senate, where they came up with the dangerous idea of summoning a powerful temporal storm called a Time Spiral to spirit Ravnican warriors of both the past and the future into their present timeline to help their cause…

Their gambit worked. The Phyrexians have been defeated by the heroes of Ravnica’s past and future, and Szadek slew their champion, Glissa the Traitor. The demon Rakdos used an ancient spell to seal off the Phyrexian portals, and the threat of Compleation is now over.

HEROCLIX: THE GATHERING: MONTH FOUR: RISE OF THE ELDRAZI!!

Except… actions have consequences, and the sundering of the Guildpact combined with the ripping of time itself have now brought the Ravnican plane to the attention of the Old Gods known now as the Eldrazi, once thought to be locked away in the prison plane of Zendikar.

But the Eldrazi are native to the Blind Eternities, the space between planes, and what was once their prison is now more of a fortress, a stronghold from whence they will pour forth and reclaim their position at the top of the planar hierarchy.

Many hoped that the triumph of Ravnica over the Phyrexians would usher in a new era of fairness and justice for all. But soon, there will be no “fair.” There will be no “just.” There will only be the will of the Eldrazi.

And they are rising…

Well then!! Hello fellow Clixers, and welcome to the fourth and FINAL Month of Heroclix: The Gathering, exclusiviely at Comics & More in Madison Heights, MI!!

Month One ended with Roberto Ty piloting a House Dimir team to victory (with noted Spy Nick Fury standing in for Szadek!), which is why House Dimir came out on tops in our Month One recap story.

However, in Month Two, Matthew Wenderski used a Simic Combine squad to triumph over all comers, resulting in Momir Vig saving the day in that chapter.

Matt won again in Month Three, but now everyone will face the doom of the Eldrazi in Month Four as we play out the final battle for Ravnica!

But before we get to this Month’s Build, let’s have a look at the Scoreboard!

Again, to review, each competitor scored Tournament Points as follows:

No figure larger than a peanut base (UNLESS YOU ARE PLAYING ELDRAZI!! See the Eldrazi entry for more details).

No Call-Ins.

Possession pieces are okay to play. (Basically the Heroclix version of an Aura Enchantment, right?)

You must choose a Guild or other faction from the chart below. Once you’ve chosen, your army must be built around the generic keyword pairings associated with that Guild or faction. This means that everyone on your force must have at least ONE of the two generic keywords listed.

All characters friendly to your force can use the associated Guild Team Ability (GTA) or Faction Team Ability (FTA).

NOTE: After the sundering of the Guildpact at the end of Month One, the Guild Team Abilities are all your figures have to fall back on. This means that ANY OTHER TEAM ABILITY POSSESSED BY YOUR PIECES CANNOT BE USED. Note that characters still POSSESS whatever Team Abilities are printed on their base and card; they just cannot USE them.

The Azorius Senate functions as the government of Ravnica and creates Ravnican laws.

Keywords: Politician, Ruler

Azorius Senate Team Ability: At the beginning of the game, place an Immunity token on the character card of one character with the highest point value of those using this team ability. When a character with an Immunity token is within 8 squares of an opposing character’s starting area and is dealt damage, it may be given an action token to remove the Immunity token from its card and ignore the damage dealt. When a character with the Immunity token on its card is KO’d, you may place the Immunity token on the card of the remaining character on your force that is the highest point character that can use the team ability.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The Azorius Senate was all but destroyed following the events of Month One. Their leader, Augustin IV was murdered and their guild hall was decimated. They are still rebuilding. Therefore, the Azorius Senate MAY NOT BE CHOSEN for Month Four builds.

BOROS LEGION

Ravnica’s security force, the Boros Legion is both Ravnica’s constabulary and standing army. The Boros suffered a terrible blow when their Parun, Razia, was killed in battle, but another angel, Feather, has rallied the Legion back into battle readiness. The Eldrazi are coming, and its all hands on deck.

Keywords: Police, Soldier

Boros Legion Team Ability: Adjacent friendly characters modify their range values by +1.When a character using this Team Ability is adjacent to a friendly character making a ranged combat attack, modify the target’s defense value by -1 if the target is within line of fire of this character.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: Feather hasn’t just revived the Boros Legion, she’s slightly upgraded their capabilities. Note that adjacent friendly characters now modify their range values by +1 in addition to the previous effects of the Boros Legion Team Ability.

HOUSE DIMIR

In practice, little information on the Dimir is known. It is, however, known that the Dimir are involved in assassinations, criminal activity, and espionage on a contractual basis.

Szadek has led his House to victory, but the celebration is short lived. Even if he can muster enough strength to repel the invaders, the other guilds may use this new conflict as an opportunity to take back what was taken from them.

While subtlety will always be the primary tactic of House Dimir, the time has come to step out from the shadows and remind everyone why they should be afraid of what stirs in the night…

Keywords: Spy, Assassin

House Dimir Team Ability: A character using this team ability can’t have their defense power countered if they occupy the lowest elevation of terrain.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The House Dimir Team Ability has not changed since its revision in Month Two. While their presence in the shadows of Ravnica is now common knowledge, they are still very hard to deal with if encountered on their home turf–Ravnica’s sewers and Underbelly…

Golgari Swarm Team Ability: Characters using this team ability can use Stealth on their starting click. If that character can already use Stealth on their starting click, lines of fire may not be drawn to that character by opposing characters while on that click.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Golgari Swarm.

GRUUL CLANS

Ravnica’s foresters, gamekeepers, park rangers, wildlife officers, and wildskeepers. But with the wilds declining, the role of the Clans has also diminished, and many Gruul Clans members have adopted an anarcho-primitivist ideology and become Ravnica’s defenders of nature, intent on destroying civilization.

Keywords: Animal, Brute

Gruul Clans Team Ability: All successful attacks made by a character using this Team Ability generate knock back. Knock back generated by a character using this Team Ability cannot be ignored.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Gruul Clans.

IZZET LEAGUE

Ravnica’s formative and physical scientists and engineers. The Izzet League are known to perform magical experiments, ever with reckless abandon and sometimes with spectacular but severe results.

Keywords: Scientist, Mystical

Izzet League Team Ability: When a character using the Izzet League Team Ability takes damage from an attack, roll a d6 that can’t be rerolled and consult the chart below for the resulting effect.

1: This character takes 1 additional unavoidable damage and gets an action token after actions resolve.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Izzet League. Once normal Mystics was turned off, this GTA worked extremely well (instead of being EXTREMELY overpowered).

ORZHOV SYNDICATE

Nearly every business in Ravnica ties back to the Orzhov in some devious way or another. Whilst they bear the facade of a religious group and may well have been a true faith at the signing of the Guildpact, they now worship only profit and power.

Keywords: Mystical, Politician

Orzhov Syndicate Team Ability: Characters using this Team Ability can’t be the target of an opponent’s Outwit or Perplex unless they’ve been targeted with an attack previously in the same turn.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to Orzhov.

CULT OF RAKDOS

Founded by Parun Rakdos, an ancient demon, the Cult of Rakdos attend to menial labor and the services industry, which includes some less-than-savory offerings, such as assassination, as well as more agreeable ones, such as the catering (i.e., food service) and entertainment industries.

Using the strife of the end of the Guildpact as a distraction, acolytes of Rakdos have finally managed to raise their Parun from the depths of darkness and despair. But will Rakdos choose to fight the invaders or decide to use this opportunity to thwart Szadek and seize Ravnica for his own?

Keywords: Monster, Mystical

Cult of Rakdos Team Ability: Whenever a character using this team ability is KO’d, you may roll a d6 and subtract 2 (minimum 1). Deal that much damage, divided as you choose, among any number of opposing characters adjacent to the square the KO’d character occupied.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change to the Team Ability, but please note that the return of the demon Rakdos has slightly altered the Cult of Rakdos keywords. Now a character must have either the Monster or Mystical keyword to be eligible for the Cult of Rakdos (I mean, they just awakened their demon overlord, so, yeah… )

SELESNYA CONCLAVE

Despite their superficial appearance of being a “good” and “peace-loving”, in truth the guild is just as hypocritical and as sinister, if not more so, as other Ravnican guilds. The Selesnya Conclave often employs its quietmen and other members to silence the civilians of Ravnica from up close and wreak havoc.

Keywords: Brute, Spy

Selesnya Conclave Team Ability: When characters using this Team Ability roll doubles on a successful close attack roll, that attack generates no knock back; instead, that attack cannot be evaded, damage dealt can’t be reduced below 1 and any hit characters get an action token.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: No change from Month 2.

SIMIC COMBINE

The original purpose of the Simic Combine was to preserve the health of all Ravnican life-forms. They were devoted to the study of life, medicines, and biomancy. But just as life can adapt, so did the Combine. Momir Vig, the Simic guildmaster, was dissatisfied with this original purpose and formed a new purpose: to improve upon life-forms of Ravnica.

Keywords: Animal, Scientist

Simic Combine Team Ability: At the beginning of your turn, choose one option to last until the end of your turn for all friendly characters using this Team Ability. All friendly characters using this Team Ability ignore Shape Change; or all friendly characters using this Team Ability ignore Stealth this turn.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The Month 2 change helped this Guild quite a bit (indeed, both players in the Championship game were playing Simic), so it will stay as is for now.

NEW PHYREXIA

It came not in the form of a noble struggle, a fair contest of warriors clashing will against will, but as a wave of unstoppable slaughter. Mirran partisans resisted bravely, using their wits and magic to fend off the onslaught that originated from inside their own world. But their efforts were for naught. Phyrexia is victorious. Mirrodin now goes by a different name: New Phyrexia.

And New Phyrexia hungers…

Keywords: Robot, Armor

New Phyrexia Team Ability:Characters using this team ability can use Perplex, but only to target a character with the Armor or Robot keyword. This use of Perplex may not modify damage values, and no character may be targeted by this ability more than twice per turn. This use is in addition to any other uses of Perplex.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The Phyrexians have finally been defeated! Thus, they can no longer be chosen.

TIME SPIRAL

From Ravnica’s forged Past to its many posssible Futures come the warriors caught in the Time Spiral. But even if they are able to turn the tide of the war with New Phyrexia, what will become of them once the invasion is over? And if the sundering of the Guildpact awakened the interest of New Phyrexia, whose attention might the spiraling of time itself attract?

Now, that question has been answered. The Eldrazi are rising…

Keywords: Past, Future

Time Spiral Team Ability:Characters using this Team Ability may useProbability Control. When a roll is ignored because of thisteam ability an action token must be placed on a friendlycharacter on the battlefield or the roll is not ignored.

GAMEPLAY NOTES: The time-displaced warriors of Ravnica come packed with the ability to manipulate time itself. No change for Month Four.

The Eldrazi are gargantuan monstrosities who have transcended the colors of mana as we know them. Native to the Blind Eternities, they are huge and immensely powerful. Confronting them is like confronting the multiverse itself.

Keywords: Deity, Cosmic, Monster

Additional Requirements:Characters who cost less than 100 Points may not be chosen for this faction.

Rise of the Eldrazi Team Ability:Characters using the Rise of Eldrazi Team Ability can use Willpower and their powers cannot be countered. When you build your force, you may include characters with any size base as long as they still meet the Rise of Eldrazi Keyword Requirements.

Alright! There is your Month Four Scenario! Hope to see everyone at the game! And thanks to everyone who has attended these events (and also to all of you who have left comments about this! If you’ve run this scenario at your local venue, let us know how it went!). It’s been a blast to see such positive responses from you folks!

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Well now! It’s been awhile, but I’m finally back, and my return to writing articles here on Critical Missives couldn’t have come at a better time!

Because Avengers Defenders War is here, and it’s so much more than “Marvel’s Joker’s Wild,” as some around here (HypeFox) have dubbed it, although there are some such comparisons to be made..

To wit:

(AKA, Some Notes About the Set:)

Yup. If you open Porcupine in a meaningful tournament, you are definitely “FIKKT.”

The Commons and Uncommons are both exciting and good, but the Rares kinda suck. And by “kinda” I mean, like, they are really, truly, awfully garbage-y. There are MAYBE three Rares that might ever see play from me in this set. Opening a pack with ADW049Porcupine or ADW043 Machete as your Rare is just a real downer.

“Pull me as your Rare in Sealed and you’ll have the same look on your face.“

While I had some very good experiences using this set in Sealed, most people (HypeFox) were not as enthusiastic. I spoke to one person playing sealed at a Wizkids Open whose Rares were ADW042Gladiator and ADW041Foggy Nelson. In fact, Gladiator was his most expensive piece at 60 points. It’s hard to face off against pieces that are 150 points or more like ADW040Count Nefaria when nothing you have to use is over 60 points. Those boosters might as well have come with a note telling you what time Battle Royals were going to start.

There were no Primes in this set. That meant a case might have 3 SR’s and a Chase in one brick, and just 3 SR’s in the other. So if you bought just a brick you weren’t guaranteed a Chase or a Prime.

Big pictures of Thor and Namor on the boxes, no trace of them in set. I’m still waiting to pull one.

And finally, on a personal level, I really love Shifting Focus and I hope they do more of it in sets to come.

Okay! Enough of that! Let’s get into some…

TOP FIVE HONORABLE MENTIONS:

5. ADW006 Vision— 50 Points — Common: I don’t remember ever seeing a dial with 5 clicks of Invincible and Impervious for 50 Points. It’s also unusual to see a 50 Point dial with Indomitable. Add to that an offense that lets him do 3 Damage through reducers and you’ve got yourself a great package.

His only weaknesses are a complete lack of range and no move and attack save for two top clicks of Sidestep. Thankfully, both of those weaknesses can be fixed with a free action when you shift to ADW024Vision because, oh yeah, HE ALSO SHIFTS FOCUS IN CASE HE WASN’T ALREADY OVERPOWERED FOR HIS POINTS!

4. ADW021 Hulk— 75 Points — Uncommon: For 75 points you get 6 Clicks featuring Invincible and then Impervious. He has 4 Damage for his entire dial and Traited Super Strength to add to the damage even more (and add knockback under the new rules that are coming out). When he does get hurt, his combination of Flurry and Steal Energy will help minimize the pain.

He’s very undercosted for his points which is why Wizkids added a negative Trait to his card (LEAVE HULK ALONE!:At the beginning of your turn, if Hulk was targeted with an attack since your last turn, place an Anger token on his card. If Hulk wasn’t targeted with an attack since your last turn, remove an Anger token from his card. After placing or removing Anger tokens, if Hulk has 5 Anger tokens or more he is immediately KO’d.). Fortunately for Hulk enthusiasts, Wizkids was too conservative with the trait and I have a hard time imagining it ever mattering in a game.

3. ADW023 Wasp — 40 Points — Uncommon: I’ll bet a fair amount of you reading this article will think that that this an unusual choice. But I love this piece. She is one part Secondary Attacker and one part Support Figure. Offensively she is similar to ADW035 Dr. Strange, but instead of hiding behind your other characters she can remain in the open. Why? Because this 40 point character has a 21 defense against ranged attacks! Psychic Blast allows her to bypass damage reducers when she wants to get offensive or she can Costume Change to ADW023 Wasp and use her dual target Incapacitate. Her supporting Leadership power allows her to remove tokens from a much higher point character and her small size also allows almost anyone to carry her.

2. ADW050 Batroc— 40 Points — Rare: Batroc usually doesn’t get much respect in the comics, but in the HeroClix world he’s the real deal. Even though his Attack and Defense values are average, he really stands out in three areas: His low point cost of 40; his Improved Movement that ignores Hindering and Elevated Terrain and also Characters; and his Special Movement Power Zey Call Me… Ze Lee-Pair. It reads, “Batroc can use Sidestep. When he has one action token, he may use Sidestep twice this turn and may be given a free action to make a close attack.” If he starts a turn with one action token, he can move up to 4 spaces (ignoring most terrain and moving through characters) and make a free action attack with Precision Strike. And after all that, he still clears tokens!

1. ADW059 Klaw — 110 Points — Super Rare: Klaw is that rare balance of strong offense, defense, and movement. On offense he’s got a starting 4 Damage Value and the ability to pick any Attack Power once each turn. That can be Psychic Blast, Pulse Wave, or even Telekinesis if the situation warrants it. He also has a Movement Special Power that lets him ignore almost all terrain and Sidestep as many as 6 squares each turn.

That means he could Sidestep through a wall and then Pulse Wave someone on the other side. On defense he has Can’t Hurt What’s Made of Sound which states, “Klaw can use Super Senses. If Klaw would take more than 2 damage, he takes 2 damage instead.” The only thing keeping him from going higher on this list are low(-ish) Attack Values and a lack of Willpower.

All of which brings us to…

THE TOP TEN FIGURES IN AVENGERS DEFENDERS WAR!!

10. ADW064 Ghost Rider— 75 Points — Super Rare: This is the best of the mounted figures that move through opposing forces in a straight line, but all three in this set are worth owning. He starts with his super movement power that lets you do 2 Penetrating Damage by attacking every opposing figure in a straight line. On defense he starts with Invulnerability and Indomitable.

What sets him apart from the other mounted figures is that when he hits an opposing figure he can move them one space to either side of the path he traveled. Taking into account that he ignores most terrain this could make him very good against opposing Stealthy characters or really any piece that relies on adjacency (defense balls, Mastermind, etc.).

9. ADW048 Nuke— 70 Points — Super Rare: I love characters that can heal themselves and Nuke has that covered. At the start of his turn he can choose the Red Pill for +1 attack in close combat, the Blue Pill for Precision Strike, or the White Pill for a one click heal in lieu of attacking this turn.

He starts with Running Shot, Energy Explosion (which combos nicely with the Blue Pill and Precision Strike) and when he gets damaged he gains Charge plus Super Strength (which is when you’ll want to start popping Red Pills to grant him +1 attack). When it’s time to clear tokens a White Pill will heal some of the damage he’s taken. He’s not going to take down a 150 point (or more) figure single-handedly, but he offers a lot for just 70 points.

8. ADW052 (Totally Awesome) Hulk — 160 Points — Super Rare: I’ll say it again. I love characters that can heal themselves. Before you play him (or play against him) his healing isn’t obvious. He is one of those pieces that is better in practice than on paper.

His BATTLING MONSTERS! Trait (BATTLING MONSTERS!: When Hulk hits an opposing character with the Monster keyword or with a printed damage value of 4 or more, after actions resolve remove an action token from him.) doesn’t come in handy that often, but his BEST HULK EVER Trait is one of the best Traits I’ve ever seen. It reads, “Hulk can use Super Strength. When he KO’s an opposing character, heal him a number of clicks equal to the damage that would have been taken minus the actual damage taken.” When you combine the Traited Super Strength with his printed 4 damage on every click, he can dish out a lot of damage. That leads to high damage KOs which in turn power his healing.

I used him in Sealed to take first place during a Prerelease. In all three games he was knocked down to at least his second to last click, but ended each game near the top of his dial. While he can’t do everything himself, with the proper supporting figures he can soak up damage and KO his way to good health.

7. ADW040 Count Nefaria— 200 Points — Rare: He has bad keywords (Lethal Legion, Maggia, Ruler), but a pretty decent dial for 200 points. He starts with Running Shot, Psychic Blast, Invincible to go along with his Stealth. His 7 Range and Stealth helps keep Outwit from targeting him on his first three clicks and Flight means that his movement won’t be hampered by hiding in Hindering Terrain.

The reason why he is so high on this list is his improved form of regeneration “IONIC RESERVES.” He has it sprinkled through out his dial. It says, “Count Nefaria can use Invulnerability and Regeneration. When he uses Regeneration and has one action token, he doesn’t subtract 2 from the d6 roll.” With a lucky roll he could regenerate for 6 clicks of healing!

6. ADW068 Daredevil (AKA Chair Devil)— 80 Points — Chase: For 80 Points you get the 6 clicks with the Mystics TA, Traited Stealth, Precision Strike, and Super Senses. He has better than average attack and Flurry in the middle of his dial to make that Precision Strike hurt.

That might be enough to justify his point cost right there, but his Trait “LEADER OF THE HAND” allows him to generate nearly unlimited tie up figures with Stealth and the Hydra TA. It reads, “Once per turn, give Daredevil a power action to place a #adw015 Hand Ninja from outside the game in a square of hindering terrain within range and line of fire. If a friendly character with The Hand keyword was KO’d since your last turn, this is a free action instead.”

So at the beginning of the game you can make a few ADW015 Hand Ninja before the other force even gets close. Then for the rest of the game when ANY other member of the Hand on your team gets KOed you can make another ADW015 Hand Ninja as a free action on your turn.

5.ADW035 Dr. Strange — 50 Points — Rare: This version of the Doctor is equal parts Finger Bang DXF017 Deadpool (Sidestep, Psy Blast) and DXF059B Wiz Kid (+1 to stats to adjacent characters). Add to that his Shifting Focus versions that Transport your team (ADW001 Dr. Strange) or Defend it (ADW019 Dr. Strange) and you’ve got a great figure and one of the most versatile pieces in the set!

4. ADW030 Punisher-– 50 Points — Uncommon: Everyone who attended an ADW Prerelease knows about (Rocket Launcher) ADW009 Punisher. That guy dished out ranged group damage that far exceeds his 50 point value. Unfortunately, as easily as he can dish out the damage he can also easily take it in return. That means that most of the time you will need to use the much more subtle ADW030 Punisher.

This close combat version of the Punisher features an improved form of BCF, Combat Reflexes, Indomitable, Wildcard TA, and most importantly Stealth. This dial alone is worth the 50 points even if you never switch forms. So keep him in that form until it’s just the right time to strike and then “say hello to my little friend!” for fun and profit!

3. ADW053 Iron Man — 165 Points — Super Rare: So the first thing everyone thinks of when they see a Primary Attacker character in Modern that allows them to pick a power is “how does that character compare to JW053B Jakeem Thunder?”

He can gain new powers via a free action, not just at the start of turn

Here are Jakeem’s advantages:

1 click longer dial

25 points less cost

1 square longer range

Can chose a Defense Power

Doesn’t lose existing powers when he gains new powers

Choosing powers is Traited and lasts the whole dial

Has a Team Ability

JW053BJakeem Thunder is still a better piece, but there are some situations where Iron Man is better. Keeping in mind that Jakeem Thunder is the piece to beat right now in competitive play, coming close means that this Iron Man is a piece you should look to own.

2. ADW071 Iron Heart— 25 Points — Chase: She is one part ADW007 Black Panther (cheap Outwit), one part JW025 Hawkman (cheap Taxi), and one part JW060V The Joker (she doesn’t die easy).

Her Sidestep, Flight, and 10 Movement make her a top tier Taxi and at 25 points there is no Taxi piece cheaper in Modern Age. She starts with Outwit, but she shuffles among all the best supporting powers (Outwit, Perplex and Probability Control) as she takes damage.

Her 18 defense is bolstered by the Trait ARMOR’S FALLING APART ON ME. It reads, “Iron Heart begins the game with 1 Broken Armor token. When she is dealt damage, instead roll a d6 that can’t be rerolled. If the result is equal to or less than the number of Broken Armor tokens, she is KO’d. If not, turn her to that click number and give her another Broken Armor token. This can’t be ignored.” So the first time she takes damage she has an 17% chance of being KOed. After 2 hits it’s 33%. After 3 it’s 50%. On average she will be KOed after 3 hits, but it can take as many as 6 hits to KO her if you have lucky rolls. Also, it’s only the number of hits that count, not the amount of damage, not even if it’s Pulse Wave damage. It’s all the same to RiRi.

WF061 Superman with an Ultra Heavy Object will do 8 damage to any other character, but it still is just one broken token for Iron Heart. WF048 Zatara can sacrifice himself to do a 4 damage Pulse Wave attack. Iron Heart will just take one broken token in place of that damage. That’s insane for 25 points.

1. ADW051 Dr. Strange, Earth’s Guardian— 80 Points — Super Rare (Title Character): One of my main complaints about DXF060 Deadpool, Merc With A Mouth is that his keywords (Initiative and X-Factor) don’t leave a lot of options for team building. In fact they kinda suck. Well, Wizkids must have heard those complaints because Dr. Strange was made with the Avengers and Mystical keywords. If you can’t find good team building options with those keywords then I have nothing for you.

His dial alone is almost worth 80 points. 7 range with Sidestep, 11 Attack, Psychic Blast, 3 Damage, and Probability Control should do well on offense. Defensively, 18 Defense, the Mystics TA, and Energy Shield/Deflection are above average for his point cost. He also has 6 clicks of life and his values for attack and defense stay relatively the same throughout.

He has three Title Character Abilities. His first ability reads “Every Scrap Of Hidden Sorcery: Modify Dr. Strange, Earth’s Guardian’s or an adjacent friendly character’s damage value by +1 this turn.” That’s a great effect and I would use that often, but it’s his third title ability that really blows me away. It says, “Sorceror Supreme: For the rest of the game, as long as Dr. Strange, Earth’s Guardian is on the map you may reroll an attack roll each turn.” That’s huge. It’s in addition to any use of Probability Control your team might have, and it lets him join the ranks of the only two other characters in Modern who can affect your rolls anywhere on the board: SMWW060Mr. Mxyzptlk and TMNT2029 Renet Tilley.

And that’s why Dr. Strange, Earth’s Guardian is the best character in this set.

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… so until I’m caught up with work and ready to post again (or until Ninwashui manages to get his Avengers Defenders War Top Ten together… ), enjoy this little video I shot at the Toledo Zoo & Aquarium!